Friends to the End
by Phoenixian
Summary: To outsiders the marauders appear to be an unlikely group, but luckily for them they're on the inside... and there's no better place to be. Series of one shots highlighting key events in their lives and the making of their family. No particular order or style. Friendship, love, adventure and humour with some of JKR's best characters.
1. Chapter 1

You open your eyes and your whole body protests instantly in the most familiar way. Memories flicker somewhere in the back of your mind, but they are disconnected as though they belong to someone or something else, and then they dissolve into the recesses of your brain.

You wait for the pain to wash over you. You anticipate the agony as part of the process; The coppery taste of your own blood in your mouth, the wounds you've inflicted upon yourself in the night when you were less than aware of what you were doing as you thrashed around the empty shack.

You take a deep breath, and you realize a very new sensation, that it doesn't hurt to breath. You take the time to access every inch of your body. You raise an arm above your head and stare at it as though you've never seen it before. Your skin is as pale as ever, but there is no blood, no missing skin or teeth marks where you used yourself as a chew toy. You roll onto your side and find that you are perfectly able both to sit up, and then to stand, and the room only spins momentarily as you steady yourself against a gnawed bedpost.

Voices on the floor below both surprise you and bring you back to reality. Your friend's easy laughter and chatter reach you, and a moment later they are on the stairs before they burst through the door.

"It's about time!" Sirius announces enthusiastically, looking you over briefly before flopping down on the bed you have just vacated. A cloud of dust rises into the air around him but his eyes are closed and he doesn't seem to notice it as it settles back into place on top of him. You stare at him lying there for a long moment, but beyond the usual he hardly has a hair out of place. James meanwhile has three long thin red scratches that travel down his throat and disappear beneath the neckline of his jumper, though they aren't deep and he doesn't seem to notice them. Looking at them makes you flinch, but he is grinning.

"What did I tell you Moony?" he says with his usual air of confidence. "Everything went perfectly, and not only are you all in one piece, but we are as well."

He yawns then returns to grinning. He is looking at you the same way he always has, with no hint of the night before in his dark eyes, the first night that they have ever witnessed you in your transformed state. This morning was what really worried you, but there is no trepidation or fear in your friend's gaze, not that you have ever seen him afraid before but you didn't know what to expect as you disappeared into the monster, an experiment that you hadn't been completely prepared for, and yet…

"Alright, mate?" James urges you. "What do you think?"

You glance at Peter, who is wide eyed but appears unharmed. You take a deep breath and it hits you again that you feel no pain but the usual ache.

You look around at your friends, recalling the stag, the dog and the rat that shared this same room with you the night before. You need time to process everything that has happened, to balance the risk that you all face if this is to continue. You want to thank them, to tell them how much everything they have done has meant to you, and how much they have changed your life, but they are all giving you skeptical looks, waiting as patiently as they are able, so familiar... and you are so tired that you can't quite bring yourself to break the peaceful companionship that comes so easily after so long. And there are other sensations that take priority. This talk will have to wait, hopefully until after your head has found pillow. But before that even...

"Breakfast" you say eagerly. "I'm starved."

* * *

><p>Hi, everybody,<p>

Since you can never have too much of the marauders I bring you another series of one shots on the subject of my favourite foursome (fivesome if you include Lily, which I do when it suits me). I kind of have writers block on my other stories at the moment so I thought writing some one shots would be fun and maybe give me some ideas and get me back on track. I'm thinking this series will be significant moments in the marauders lives such as the first time they were able to transform with Lupin in their fifth year. Anyway, I heard the weirdest song today that reminded me instantly of the marauders (Friends to the End- By Relient K) which basically got me motivated to get this started. Thanks to everyone who's reading, new and old. Hope to see you again soon. :)


	2. Chapter 2

**Early attempt at creating the marauder's map. Enjoy.**

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Remus asked with the usual intelligent skepticism in his voice, leaning over the spell book, nose nearly touching the page as he held the lamp as close to the book as he could.

"Certainly" James and Sirius answered as one, holding the parchment between them. Their friend's skepticism was matched only by their never wavering confidence in their own abilities.

"You wanna see the book again?" Remus asked, holding it out for them, but they both scoffed at the offering, shaking their heads. Shrugging out of the cloak for convenience sake, they let it pool to the ground as they cleared the table and lay the map carefully out in front of them all as though it was a priceless relic, which it was about to become if all went as planned.

"Ready?" Sirius whispered mysteriously, glancing first around at the dark rows of books and empty tables, and then at each of his friends.

"Wait!" Peter hissed. "Do you hear something?"

They all fell silent for a precautionary moment, but the only sound was their own breathing.

"Come on Wormtail" Sirius mocked. "If you don't stop hearing things we'll never get this done."

"I did hear something" the smaller boy whispered back defiantly, looking to the others for support.

James shook his head. "Just keep a lookout for Mrs. Norris. Let's do this already" he said impatiently. "Do we all understand how this works?" he asked. Everyone looked to Peter. He nodded, but took the offered spell book once again, burying his nose in it as the others sighed in frustration.

"Alright, alright" he said finally. "I'm ready."

"Are you sure?" James asked. The other boy nodded, and the four of them exchanged glances, circling tightly around the table. As one, they pulled their wands from the pockets of their robes and touched them first to the map, and then to each other in the center of the parchment.

"3…2…1…" James counted down so that they all knew when to begin. Warm light began to glow at the end of each of the four wands where they touched the parchment, joining them together. It began to flow out, illuminating the carefully hand drawn lines on the parchment, that mapped out every corner and passageway in the castle.

"It's working" Peter said in excitement… and then the whole thing went up in flames.

Cursing loudly and forgetting where they were they proceeded to douse the flames with their wands before it managed to jump to the table or the pile of books that they had spread out around them on their table in the restricted section.

And then, as the fire sputtered and died, they all heard it. The quiet patter of small feet, and then an eager and satisfied "Meeoow!" as a pair of golden eyes peered at them from the end of the aisle.

"Run!" Sirius shouted at them all.

"Cloak!" Remus corrected quickly before they had all panicked and taken off in opposite directions. He waved his wand, and the mess of burnt parchment disappeared, the smoke cleared and the table was wiped clean as the books they had been using flew back to their places on the shelves. James fished the invisibility cloak from its resting place on the floor and threw it over them all as they heard the door to the library opening nearby. They didn't need to see or hear him to know that it was Filch, though he began to coo to his cat as they slid as silently as possible in his direction, resisting their urges to kick Mrs. Norris as her eyes followed them even through their disguise.

"Who's in here? Show yourselves!" Filch yelled into the darkness of the library, framed in the doorway, completely unaware that they were within arms reach. As he moved farther into the room they took their chance, sliding through the gap of the open door as it began to swing shut. They just made it before it slammed shut, separating them from the caretaker, with them on the outside. They looked at each, repressing their laughter, then took off up the corridor in the direction of the Gryffindor common room, hunched over so that their feet didn't stick out the bottom of the cloak.


	3. Chapter 3

"A week?" she asked, though she already knew full well that it was exactly seven days before the next full moon, and she hardly had to glance at the sky to figure it out. She could read it in his exhausted and pale face and the way he carried himself in the same resigned fashion that the full moon was coming up quickly.

He nodded slowly. "I can't believe this is our last year at school" he offered softly. She wasn't entirely certain what the two subjects had to do with one another, but she didn't have to ask.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do after this year Lily. Who's going to hire a werewolf? What am I supposed to do for the rest of my life? I was so excited when Dumbledore let me come to school, but it doesn't really matter how good you do in class, or that you're a prefect. I used to think that if I could work hard enough, and prove myself enough that it wouldn't matter what I was anymore. I don't know when I grew up and realized that in the end I'm still a werewolf. All I've gotten is being fully aware of all the opportunities I'll never have. In the end it seems like there never was any point to any of this" he said in frustration, running a hand through his hair in a fashion that reminded her strongly of James' old habit.

She didn't know what to say for a long moment, but the look on his face told her that he had been holding it all in for a long time and that she would have to say something to make him feel better, to be more optimistic about his future.

"So it wasn't worth it?" she challenged him. "It wasn't worth coming to school, learning everything you possibly could, proving to everyone who knows you that you are smart, and capable, that you are more than what you become one night per month? It wasn't worth it to make friends like the ones you have? To learn that not everyone sees you the way you see yourself, or the way the idiots who don't know you see you? Have you really only learned how to feel sorry for yourself?"

He gave a rye smile. No reply was necessary. She could only hope she had eased some of his worries.

She continued anyway. "Sure" she said, "Maybe if you had to do it all over again you would have said no thanks Dumbledore, and spent the rest of your life hidden away in your parents cellar while the world passed you by. There would be no moments like this one, breaking the rules with the people who care more about you more than anyone else in the world, and there would be nothing that you would ever be able to do for yourself or for anyone else, but at least you wouldn't know what you were missing out on, right?"

"Alright, alright" he said, trying to repress a smile as she turned back to the street.

"Ya?" she said, "You don't feel like giving up just yet?"

"Of course not Lily" he said in a placating voice.

"You don't want to go board yourself up in the shrieking shack permanently?"

He laughed. "And never see you again? I don't think I could handle that."

She returned his laughter. "That's what I thought" she told him, turning and walking backwards down the street, arms held out to keep herself balanced, making him roll his eyes.

"You'll be fine Remus" she said finally, "I'm not willing to give up on you just yet in any case. My galleons are on you. Besides, you only have sharp teeth twelve days of the year" she added thoughtfully. "Percentage-wise that definitely doesn't define you."

"I'll remember that" he said.


	4. Chapter 5

_"Potter, James"_

The hat and the stool are the last obstacle between him and everything he can ever remember wanting. This is his future, his friends, his family. Yet he isn't nervous because that's not the way his mind works. He always gets the things that he wants and doesn't know any other way.

Hundreds of eyes are on him, and he takes the steps in two bounds, dark eyes sweeping over the professors in front of him; Dumbledore, with that twinkling smile that reaches his eyes, and the other students, waiting impatiently for the Potter boy and the other first years to get sorted, for the meal to commence. He isn't hungry himself, not after the cauldron cakes and licorice wands from the train.

He brushes his hair out of his eyes, grins at the severe professor reading from the scroll of names; he's sure he's met her before, has been introduced by his parents, but paying attention has never been his strong suit. He slides up onto the stool, so that his feet dangle a good foot above the ground. He pulls at the new robes that fit him in a way that he is unaccustomed to and eyes the Gryffindor table at the end of the hall where he knows he'll be sitting in just a minute.

The hat is lowered onto his head, nearly sliding down over his eyes but resting instead on top of his glasses so that he can still see everyone in the hall watching him.

"I was wondering when I would be meeting you, Mr. Potter" a gravelly voice sounds, as though in his mind. He might have jumped had he not known exactly what to expect.

"I remember your parents well, and your grandparents before them. Curious bunch I can tell you, great minds, ahead of their time, and clever. Your mother certainly excelled in Ravenclaw."

He's already shaking his head, forgetting that the hat can read his mind, but it certainly isn't finished its analysis.

"But I see you wouldn't fit there, oh no, you're much more like your father. A good match, the two of them. Hmmm…You have a certain penchant for adventure, a restlessness that will certainly get you in trouble, but could also take you far if you learn how to channel your talents… oh, yes, I'd say it's fairly obvious what to do with you, don't you think?"

"Yes!" he thinks back excitedly. Of course it's the most obvious thing to him, the only option he has ever considered. The hat continues to speak but he is barely paying attention to the words now that he has what he wants.

"Be careful Mr. Potter, your strength and loyalty will be tested. But it's your best chance at preparation. I wish you the best of luck in… GRYFFINDOR!"

Cheers erupt from the Gryffindors as he tears the hat from his head and heads for his house table from which many familiar faces smile and wave at him. He slides into place between the boys he met on the train and the snotty redhead whose name he can't remember.

"Alright?" he says to the frail boy named Remus who looks as though he is about to be sick. The boy nods faintly in reply and they all turn to the head table as Albus Dumbledore rises to speak.

It is many hours later, after the other boys have gone to bed around him that he digs through his trunk for his new set of pyjamas that he is surprised to feel the familiar silken material brush the back of his hand. Taking it in his fist, he withdraws his father's cloak, watching it shimmer in the dim moonlight that filters through the window next to his bed. He runs it through his fingers, already anticipating the next seven years and beyond. He rises and pulls it over his shoulders, watching in the mirror as his body disappears, leaving behind a floating head. He has done it many times before, but now, for the first time, it is his, and he is here, and there will be no stopping him.

"No way!" an impressed voice hisses from the darkness and he turns to see Sirius Black sitting up in bed, grinning.

"Oh yeah" is all he says in response, pulling the cloak up over his head.


	5. Chapter 6

She knew the theory of course, had spent hours in defense against the dark arts training for this moment, they both had, but it was unlike anything that she had ever expected or imagined. Remus grabbed her arm, pulling her backward and jarring her back into reality even as the impending sense of doom settled over her like an icy, suffocating blanket of fear and pain. She could see it in his face too, the fear, and it reminded her of the hope that she had just spelled out for him, how she had told him that he would be fine.

"We've done this before, it's just like in class" she said, and Remus was nodding though she couldn't make out the words that went with the gesture. "Just like we practiced" she said. Somewhere in the back of her mind voices were threatening her, yelling, darkness was coming from all sides, she was twelve years old again, being chased by older Slytherin students, she was hiding from them, something dark was bearing down on her. She could hear people screaming and crying around her, could feel the blood flowing from open wounds…

And yet somehow she was holding her wand in her hand, mirroring her friend's actions next to her as they drew closer together in the dark street, every light blocked out, every sound silenced.

"Expecto Patronum" she shouted, but there was nothing at the end of her wand. She saw a faint wisp escape from the end of Remus' wand.

"Remember!" she shouted at him, "Something happy!"

It was impossible to think. There were several of the dark creatures now, crowding into the street towards them, and she knew everything about them, how to repel them, but it didn't seem like enough. They were drawn to the fear, they would suck out every happy feeling and memory, but she didn't want to give up her memories, not the happy ones or the bad ones, she had to remember, she had to think.

And all of a sudden, memories were rushing through her mind at a blinding pace. She was six years old, and she was watching her father step off the train in full military uniform, throwing herself into his arms… she was seven, and Severus was telling her all about magic as they gazed at the stars… she was sitting on a park bench with her sister, just laughing, the last time they would really ever laugh together… she was ten years old, tearing through the woods with a letter clutched in her fist, running to tell her best friend in the whole world… she was walking through diagon alley for the first time… she was eleven years old and she was falling asleep in her four poster bed for the first time… she was in class… watching a quidditch match… her prefect badge slid out of the envelope into her hand… she had passed her apparition test… she was walking with James and Sirius and Remus and Peter, teasing each other good naturedly… they were all laughing, his face was swimming in her mind… she was made headgirl… it was august 4th again.

"Expecto Patronum!"

A silvery falcon shot from the end of her wand forcefully, taking her by surprise and knocking her back into Remus , who's face was pale and haunted as he managed to produce little more than a thin unformed shape that hovered in front of him momentarily each time before dissolving. Her own patronus began to waver as she focused on him but she needed his help either way. The dementors were so close, too close, that at any moment it would be too late, a dozen of them against two, their clammy hands reaching out…

"Remus!" she shouted at him, and he turned his head towards her as though he had heard her voice from somewhere far away, and suddenly he began to scream and fell to his knees, and she knew exactly what he was imagining as he thrashed around at her feet, an event so much worse than anything she had ever experienced or would ever go through, as he was attacked by Greyback over and over again, just a child again, with no happy memories to protect his mind.

She glanced up at her bird, trying to focus on happy thoughts, but she had thought of everything she could and it was already flickering, circling closer and closer to her.

"Remus!" she had to kick him to get his attention, yanking on the collar of his jumper to force him to look at her as he experienced the most painful moment of his life over and over again.

"Remember what I said to you!" she shouted at him over the fear that was starting to mount again inside of her. "Remember getting accepted to Hogwarts, remember becoming a Gryffindor, and meeting James, and Sirius and Peter, remember that you are never going to give up, that you got everything you thought you would never have. James, Remus! Remember that you will never be alone again, that they are with you even when you're a werewolf because they love you more than anything!"

Her own patronus had become little more than a mist but somehow she had pulled Remus back to his feet and though he was sweating he had stopped screaming in pain, and he clutched his wand as her falcon soared around them.

"Tell me!" she told him. He blinked at her, then began. "Coming to Hogwarts" he told her, "The last six years of my life! Everything I have become and the friends that I never thought I would have. Sirius, and James and Peter. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs. I will never have to face it alone ever again, because of Sirius and James. And you too Lily."

She felt the dementor's touch, but she didn't look away from her friend even as the cold and the darkness threatened to envelop her. Remus was raising his wand, and his huge silver patronus shot from his wand, thundering past her, knocking away the dementor that had closed it's fingers around her wrist. She was sinking to the ground herself, as though it still had a hold on her. Remus' last words echoed in her mind, and she didn't lose them because they weren't exactly happy, but nor were they unhappy.

"…because of Sirius and James. And you Lily."

Everything was dark, but there were faces swimming in her mind, mingling with her friends words, and James' face was circling behind her eyelids, laughing, dark hair a mess, eyes sparkling behind his glasses, and some part of her had returned to august 4th once more.

And then she could see again, had somehow opened her eyes, and a furious growl ripped through the silence that was all around her, and something large and hairy leapt over her where she lay, and it wasn't any patronus, but a giant shaggy dog.

"Sirius" she said in wonder, but she knew he couldn't hear her.

"Padfoot! Get Lily out of here!"

It was another familiar person, another face, right where there had been a stag a moment before, but then there was another stag, this one silver and she wondered which one was which, and then her vision was obscured by the mass of fur once more and Padfoot's teeth were sinking into her shoulder and they were moving away. She struggled but he didn't relinquish his grip until the others were blocked from sight. She could hear other shouts now as the village came awake around them, becoming aware of what was happening in the street, and Sirius was crouched over her.

" We have to go back, we have to help them, they can't-"

She made to get up but her limbs were shaky and Sirius was stopping her. "They're fine" he was telling her. "It's under control now" but she didn't believe him. He was pulling her to her feet and her mind was slowly shuffling itself back into order. She could hear running footsteps all around them. Sound seemed to have returned, and there were other voices, some familiar, some not.

"We have to go back" she snapped at Sirius, furious that he didn't want to help the others. "I know what I'm doing."

"I know" he said, "We saw your bird, it was good."

"Falcon" she corrected him, "It's a falcon."

He nodded but he wasn't really paying attention, though his grip was firm, holding her up. He was waiting for something and then quite suddenly three boys appeared around the corner though she could still hear the shouts in the street behind them. James was supporting a weakened Remus, and Peter brought up the rear.

"It's over. They've got it all under control. They'll have aurors here soon, round them all up" James said as they skidded to a stop just long enough to regroup. Lily felt his eyes on her, but she didn't meet his gaze. She was exhausted and drained, and she knew that if Sirius let go of her she wouldn't be able to hold herself up.

888

"Who knew we'd actually make it back in time for dessert" Sirius said in surprise as they reached the marble staircase leading down to the entrance hall. The doors to the great hall were thrown wide open and loud voices and laughter floated out to them, mingling with the sounds of cutlery clattering against dishes and the smells of every good thing you could ever imagine eating. Lily felt as though every one of her senses had returned to her tenfold.

They slid into the hall in ones and twos, but she could feel the eyes on her from the moment she stepped through the doors at James' side. They were after all head boy and girl, showing up at an odd time, and not exactly in mint condition, drawing glances and whispers.

They slid onto the end of the Gryffindor bench, trying to draw as little attention as possible. She had never been happier to sit down in her life.

"Eat this" James said as soon as they had all settled, drawing a thick chocolate pie from the obscure piles of cakes and éclairs. "You're as white as nearly headless Nick."

It took a single bite for her to begin feeling better, to straighten into a real human position.

"Are you alright?" James asked her softly under the clatter and voices around them. She looked up and saw the concern in his eyes.

"I'm fine James" she said, flustered. "And I'm capable of taking care of myself you know?" she said defensively.

He nodded solemnly. "You both did better than I could have done with two against a dozen I'm sure" he said in a pacifying voice. "I saw your falcon" he told her, "It was impressive."

She nodded once. " You too. And It was kind of…" she stopped.

"What?" he urged curiously.

She shrugged. "It was kind of exciting, the real thing, like what we've learned is actually worth something now, like maybe we could do something..."

James grinned at her, and she remembered how picturing his face had helped her with her patronus, to remain conscious. She could feel the color rising in her cheeks and looked away.

"We'll have to do it again" he said lightly.

"I guess so."

"What was your happy memory?" he asked her with an honest curiosity, almost as though he had read her mind.

She shook her head. "Shutup" was all she could say in reply, earning a raised eyebrow and mysterious smile.

He touched her shoulder and she glanced down to the place where Sirius had taken hold of her, teeth tearing through the fabric of her robes. "Oops" she said, and then she started to laugh, and it was partly from relief, and excitement, and the ebbing of adrenaline, and then the others joined in, Sirius chocking on his chocolate pie, making the rest of them laugh that much harder.

Lily glanced up at the head table as they all went back to their plates. Dumbledore and McGonagall were eyeing them, heads together and talking between them in low voices. She looked away quickly, eyes settling instead on someone else who was watching them from the other side of the room, his dark hair hanging in his face as he slouched at the Slytherin table, but he was the one to look away immediately as their eyes met.


End file.
